A messy adventure in learning to cook

Chicken Tortilla Soup

I like it when months act and feel like they’re supposed to. May should be sunny and fresh and mild and January should be cold and gray and snowy. And when the weather throws a curveball, like these 50-degree-sunny-days in January, well, I’m just going to pretend that it’s winter anyways. Sweaters! Skating! Snuggles! Soups!

So here we are with a chicken tortilla soup — perfect for a cold winter day or even a fluke sunny and warm winter day. This is my first attempt at making a soup (do I get a cookie??) and it’s actually quite delicious and easy. This soup is broth-based instead of cheese-based, which adds a lightness and allows the flavors — especially of the fire-roasted tomatoes–to come through.

Also, this involves cooking the chicken as the soup simmers and then shredding the chicken once it’s cooked. Alternatives would be to cook or bake the chicken separately or use rotisserie chicken from the grocery. Next time, I’m doing this with rotisserie.